Generally, scripting languages may offer simplicity and ease in software development while retaining at least some of the functional complexity offered by non-scripting languages. Some scripting languages are based on a small set of expressions and statements that make them simple to learn and easy to use when writing scripts. Scripting languages are often used for rapid development of applications, such as web applications. Additionally, in client-server environments, scripting languages may be used to implement server-side programs, client-side programs, or both. Examples of scripting languages used on the server-side include PHP, PERL, and JAVA Server Page (JSP). Examples of scripting languages on the client-side include JAVASCRIPT and VBScript.
Server-side scripting is often used for implementation of interactive websites that interface with data stores for retrieving and storing information. Server-side script code can be used by a web server to dynamically generate a web page and provide the resulting web page to client devices in response to user request. For instance, a server-side script based on the PHP scripting language allows embedding of script code with hypertext markup language (HTML) on a web server to facilitate dynamic generation of web pages to be delivered to a client device. Client-side scripts, which may be included in web pages for rendering on client devices, can be used to perform operations on the client-side without sending a request to the server for such operations.